young Gayal being early taught this habit, by being regularly fed every
night with salt, of which he is very fond; and from the occasional
continuance of this practice, as he grows up, the attachment of the
Gayal to his native village becomes so strong, that when the Cucis
migrate from it, they are obliged to set fire to the huts which they are
about to leave, lest their Gayals should return thither from their new
place of residence, before they become equally attached to it, as to the
former, through the same means.

"The wild Gayal sometimes steals out from the forest in the night, and
feeds in the rice fields bordering on the hills. The Cucis give no grain
to their cattle. With us (at Chatgaon) the tame Gayals feed on Calai
_(phaseolus max_); but as our hills abound with shrubs, it has not been
remarked what particular kind of grass they prefer.

"The Hindus in this province will not kill the Gabay (or Gayal) which
they hold in equal veneration with the cow. But the As'l Gayal, or
Seloi, they hunt and kill, as they do the wild Buffalo. The animal here
alluded to is another species of Gayal found wild in the hills of
Chatgaon. He has never been domesticated, and is in appearance and
disposition very different from the common Gayal which has just been
described. The natives call him the As'l Gayal, in contra-distinction to
the Gabay. The Cucis distinguish him by the name of Seloi; and the Mugs
and Burmas by that of P'hanj, and they consider him, next to the tiger,
the most dangerous and fiercest animal of their forests."

Mr. Elliot, in writing from Tipura, says,--"I have some Gayals at
Munnamutty, and from their mode of feeding I presume that they keep on
the skirts of the vallies, to enable them to feed on the sides of the
mountain, where they can browse; they will not touch grass, if they can
find shrubs.

"While kept at Camerlah, which is situated in a level country, they used
to resort to the banks, and eat on the sides; frequently betaking
themselves to the water, to avoid the heat of the sun. However, they
became sickly and emaciated, and their eyes suffered much; but, on being
sent to the hills, they soon recovered, and are now (1808) in a healthy
condition. They seem fond of the shade, and are observed in the hot
weather to take the turn of the hills, so as to be always sheltered from
the sun. They do not wallow in mud, like Buffaloes, but delight in
water, and stand in it during the greatest heat of the